Yesterday, I ended up not going to Jacksonville. After having a cup of coffee and a quesadilla made by Alan, I rode my bike to downtown Jacksonville Beach. Then I had three sliders at Angie’s Grum for brunch. Brett recommended that I go to the less crowded part of the beach at 30th Avenue, so I went there.

Quesadilla made by Alan

The temperature was just right for the beach. Cool and breezy. I went into the water a couple of times. But when I was sunbathing the wind blew sand all over my body, which was annoying. I guess that’s a metaphor for life. Nothing is perfect.


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</div><div>I was at the beach for maybe an hour or two before I got bored and annoyed by the sand. I decided to get an acai smoothie at Fla Juice and Bowl. I ended up chatting with Merritt on the phone for over an hour.</div><div>
</div><div>After the smoothie, I went back to the beach to see if it’s still windy and if I wanted to chill on the beach one more time. When I arrived, it was still windy so I left to go back to Brett’s house.</div><div>
</div><div>I took some photographs of my bike and listed on Facebook Marketplace, the Priority Facebook group, and Reddit Priority Bicycle subreddit. I got a lot of responses saying that I should just rebuild the back wheel or check the tension on the spokes so that I can keep the bike. A stranger named Josh on Reddit even donated $50 to support me. I couldn’t believe it! It made my day.</div><div>
</div><div>I asked Brett to see if he can take a look at the spoke tension. He used a spoke tension gauge and measured each spoke on the back wheel, then he trued the wheel. He did the same thing for the front wheel and found there were a few loose spokes. After all the adjustments were done the bike rode very well. I got lucky that my Warmshowers host is a also a great bike mechanic.</div><div>
</div><div>I gave Brett my fuel canister in exchange for his service. I also gave a pair of cycling sunglasses, a plastic container, and a case to Brett’s son, Alan. I’ve lessened my load even more so I really don’t think there will be any more broken spokes on this trip. I think I will keep my bike after all.</div><div>
</div><div>For dinner, I wanted to treat everyone by order pizza, but Janice told me she wants to make shrimp salad so that there’s leftovers for the week. So we had salad for dinner.</div><div>
</div><div>Around dusk, I saw the SpaceX Falcon rocket launch from the street. It was my first time seeing a rocket launch and it was very cool to witness humanity’s most advanced technology in action.</div><div>
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</div><div>I went to bed shortly after 9 PM. I had a great day hanging out at the beach, having my spokes adjusted, and watching the rocket launch.</div><div>
</div><div>This morning, I got up at 6 AM and will visit the Trek shop in town to buy a pair of spokes and a spoke tool just in case if any of my spokes breaks again, which I doubt will happen. Then I will ride to St. Augustine and stay at my Warmshowers host Ellen’s place.</div>